Review: The Wangs vs. The World by Jade Chang

Nobody’s family is perfect. The Wangs are no exception. Their family is full of characters with regrets, secrets, ambitions, and mistakes. We get a glimpse into each of their lives and witness their soft spots, their deepest fears and insecurities. After the novel you feel a sense of familiarity and yet still curiosity. After spending pages with them, there is still more to know, questions to be asked, conversations to be had. The unique complexity of the characters charms you and you can see a glimpse of your own family in their faces.

After losing everything in the recession, the Wangs, led by patriarch Charles, embark on a multifaceted journey: to drive cross country from CA to NY, to reclaim their ancestral lands in China, and to take an introspective look at themselves. Their journey is about more than distance. It is about exploring our family, getting to know them as people not relatives, and how a mutual need for survival exposes hidden qualities. A tale of adversity and life altering circumstance changes, these characters learn, grow, and change together becoming less naïve, less guarded, and surer of themselves. The moments of comedy are tempered by introspection: characters who wait for love, characters who feel wronged by the world, and characters who have to fight to survive. Between existential crises and the feeling the world is falling out beneath your feet are ordinary family moments and typical family misunderstandings.

What wins you over are the characters and the journey they take as the miles melt away. This book will be available October 4th and I would encourage you to pick it up if you enjoy books with real characters you can empathize with and want to be friends with. You can pick up a copy of this book here (not an affiliate link).

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review from NetGalley.